REDCAN is the UK's alliance of regional eating disorder charities

Eating disorders are illnesses that affect thoughts and behaviour around food and eating, and sometimes body image and weight. They can have serious mental and physical health consequences, but recovery is common and possible with the right support. Eating distress describes a person's experience of emotional, psychological, and sometimes physical discomfort people experience related to food, eating habits, or body image. Eating disorders can include one or more of the following: not eating enough food to thrive, episodes of not being able to stop eating, being sick or using laxatives to get rid of food, compulsive exercise, persistent thoughts about weight, food and shape, and/or body checking. Eating disorders and eating distress can stop people from enjoying their lives and or being able to participate in everyday activities. Eating disorders can become very dangerous. Some eating disorders are linked to sensory experiences of food or fear of getting ill from eating, while others link to thoughts of weight and body image. Some overlap. Many people feel shame because eating disorders are often misunderstood and stigmatised. An eating disorder is never your fault.

Really common. 3.5 million people in the UK may have eating disorders, statisticians working with charity BEAT found this year (2026). That would be one in every 20 people, or about five percent of the UK population. Other data suggests binge eating disorder (BED) is the most common eating disorder, followed by OSFED and bulimia. Anorexia affects fewer than one in ten people with eating disorders, while much more research is needed on ARFID. Eating disorders most often develop during adolescence, but can occur at any age. Although girls and women are most commonly affected, around one in five people with an eating disorder are boys or men. More research is needed to better understand the experiences of some groups, including people on lower incomes, people from minoritised ethnic communities, LGBTQ+ people, disabled and neurodivergent people, older adults, and migrants.

Eating disorders develop for many reasons and are often influenced by a combination of genetic, psychological, social, and environmental factors. Eating distress and eating disorders may emerge during periods of change and transition, challenging circumstances, or after trauma. Diet culture, appearance pressures, discrimination, and inequalities can all contribute. Not having enough food, or binging and/or purging food, may in turn affect brain chemistry, and produce or reinforce disordered thoughts and behaviour. Growing evidence suggests links between neurodivergence and eating disorders. 

Below are brief descriptions of some recognised eating disorders. However, not everyone’s experiences fit neatly into diagnostic categories, and support should be available whenever someone is struggling with food, eating, weight, or body image.

Anorexia nervosa: Restricting food intake, sometimes with excessive exercise, and an intense fear of gaining weight.

Bulimia nervosa: Episodes of binge eating followed by behaviours such as vomiting, restricting food, or using laxatives to prevent weight gain.

Binge eating disorder (BED): Episodes of eating large amounts of food while feeling out of control, often followed by guilt, shame, or distress.

Other specified feeding or eating disorder (OSFED): An eating disorder that does not fit the criteria for other diagnoses but still causes significant distress.

Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID): Avoiding certain foods or restricting intake, often due to sensory sensitivities or negative experiences with food, leading to nutritional or daily life difficulties.

Terms such as eating distress, disordered eating, and subclinical eating disorders are sometimes used to describe difficulties that may not meet high diagnostic thresholds for NHS treatment but still deserve attention and support.

REDCAN agencies work with children, young people and adults at an early stage or if further support in their recovery journey on leaving NHS care.

Support may include talking therapies, peer and family support, guided resources, and nutritional advice, tailored to individual needs and circumstances. Support needs can change over time and are influenced by factors such as physical and mental health, disability, neurodivergence, relationships, work, education, culture, and wider social circumstances. 

REDCAN agencies provide specialist support, rather than clinical treatment. Clinical care is provided by the NHS: for example, when GPs do baseline healthchecks; or when NHS eating disorder services assess that someone meets diagnostic criteria for medical intervention and treatment.

Eating disorders are on the rise across the UK. Demand for support has gone up, services are under pressure, and people without a formal diagnosis or facing disadvantage often struggle to get help. Early intervention is vital. Unfortunately, too many people get treatment only when they have become really ill, and it is harder to treat eating disorders the longer they go on.

Eating disorders have the highest death rates out of all mental illness. This can change. We need better eating disorder support, early on.

Access to early support varies widely across the country, with many areas lacking affordable community-based services. In the regions where we work, REDCAN agencies provide prevention, early intervention, and recovery support, but often face insecure funding despite our proven impact.

Many groups — including people from ethnic minority communities, LGBTQ+ people, disabled and neurodivergent people, older adults, and those on lower incomes — remain underserved. Greater awareness, sustainable funding, and stronger research are needed to ensure everyone can access timely eating disorder support.

Australia’s national eating disorder strategy takes a joined-up approach to prevention and treatment, recognising that eating disorders are "everyone’s business". The UK could take a similar approach.